West Lancashire's new Mayor is looking forward to meeting many of the voluntary groups who do marvellous work across the borough.

Councillor Neil Furey took over the chains of office on Wednesday 17 May and feels very proud and privileged to be taking on his new role.

He said: "I have enjoyed my year as Deputy Mayor and it was excellent preparation to be Mayor.

"As Deputy Mayor I visited many voluntary groups and it is a great privilege to have a civic role and meet such wonderful people. These organisations are an important part of West Lancashire and do a huge amount of work ranging from supporting people in need to arranging social activities. So I am looking forward to meeting many more of these groups.

"As Mayor I want to represent the borough and help to put it on the map as it is a nice place to live with lots of good things to do and places to visit. So I will be highlighting local attractions in Skelmersdale, Ormskirk and other parts of the borough including local parks, Ormskirk Market and Burscough Wharf.

"I am also looking forward to supporting events across the borough and visiting local schools and churches."

Another important part of Councillor Furey's role in his Mayoral year will be to raise money for his chosen charities, which are 42nd Ormskirk (Skelmersdale St Paul's) Scouts, Evermoor Hub and The Sewing Rooms in Skelmersdale.

Councillor Furey moved to Skelmersdale from Wigan in 1993 with his wife Julie, who will be the Mayoress. They have two children - Luke, aged 16, and Emily, 12, who are both pupils at Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Engineering College.

Councillor Furey was first elected to West Lancs Council in 2008 for the Skelmersdale North ward and has represented that area ever since. He has held a variety of roles on the Council including Leader and Deputy Leader of the Labour Group, Chairman of the Executive Overview and Scrutiny Committee and shadow portfolio holder for Housing.

Away from the Council he is a governor at Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Engineering College and Crow Orchard Primary School.

Councillor Furey said: "Julie is really looking forward to being Mayoress, particularly attending events and visiting schools and churches."

Scott ward Councillor Noel Delaney, who served as Mayor's Consort to the previous Mayor, will be the next Deputy Mayor.